


What Happened After Happily Ever After

by unsureavenger



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Break Up, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Established Relationship, F/M, Getting Back Together, In a way, Mortal AU, theyre adults in this, tied into the american mafia but not in a cliché way
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:53:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28647102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unsureavenger/pseuds/unsureavenger
Summary: And they lived happily ever after. At least, that's what Annabeth thought would happen when she married Percy Jackson.Percy Jackson was the epitome of perfect; cute smile, ruffled hair, beautiful eyes, charming, a good sense of humour, overtly respectful, a marine biologist who wasn't the most intelligent but worked harder than anyone she knew.But there was one problem; none of that explained why Annabeth simply wasn't in love with him anymore. She cocked her head to the side, gazed at her husband, and couldn't summon a shred of excitement.There were too many awkward silences, too much tension, and neither of them could even be bothered to fight. That is, until Percy begins acting weirdly, and then they don't seem to have any problem in that department.Light is shed upon aspects of Percy's past and Annabeth realises that the man she married isn't who she thought he was at all. Thrust into the path of danger and a realm of uncertainty, Annabeth finds herself unable to let go of the man she once considered the love of her life despite everything telling her that she should.A story of rediscovery and proving that falling in love the second time is even better than the first.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson
Comments: 8
Kudos: 21





	1. Prologue: The Cereal Aisle

Annabeth struggled to raise herself atop her tiptoes, cheeks reddening furiously as she desperately stretched her arm upwards; her fingers barely brushed the tiger on the Frosties' box. She cursed under her breath, gritting her teeth. 

Annabeth was moments away from exploding. Her day was not going well. First, her laptop crashed overnight, deleting her paper on the constitution. Then, the website she was meant to use to submit the essay decided not to inform her that it was erroneous, and Annabeth woke up in the morning, grumpy and exhausted, to an angry email from her professor, who already didn't like her very much. 

That, together with her favourite sweater ripping and her eyeliner being asymmetrical, was enough to constitute a tantrum, surely. 

And now the Frosties. Supermarkets had to know that most of their visitors weren't able to reach the top shelf, right? Did they just aim to fuel her mental breakdown? 

In that moment, Annabeth made a promise to herself that, once she graduated law school, her first act as junior associate would be suing Walmart. 

Before Annabeth could burst into tears right there in the cereal aisle, someone behind her cleared their throat. 

"Hi." 

Annabeth rocked back on her heels and glanced over her shoulder. Now, Annabeth's heart didn't often skip a beat, but today it did. Full-out disrupted rhythm as she stared at the man standing there. 

Those eyes...Jesus. Annabeth could ogle him all day. Messy black hair, green eyes, tall and muscular...and around her age. Annabeth felt her cheeks redden - from something other than frustration this time. 

"Hi," she managed. 

"Do you want some help?" 

Annabeth opened her mouth to thank him when she caught a glimpse of a smile tugging at his lips. "You're making fun of me," she said instead, crossing her arms. 

"No," he insisted. 

"Yes." 

He paused. "Fine. But I'll still get it for you." 

"Forget it." Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I'll live without cereal." 

"I don't think Frosties counts as cereal," the man pointed out. "It's, like, 90 percent sugar." 

She glared at him. "What are you, a scientist?" 

He faltered. 

"Oh my God, you're a scientist," Annabeth made a face. "You're all so arrogant and cocky, thinking you're better than the rest of us." 

He cocked his head to the right. "Architecture?" 

"Law," she corrected. 

"Right," he nodded. "So." 

There was a beat of silence. 

He broke the silence first. "Do you want me to get the Frosties for you?" 

Annabeth stared at him for a second. Two. Three. "Yes, please." 

Amusement was scribbled all across his stupid, gorgeous features, but he obliged, picking up the box and placing it inside her cart. "You're welcome," he offered. "I'm Percy, by the way." 

He grinned at her, and Annabeth was speechless. She was a law student - she was never speechless. And yet here she was. Unable to form a coherent sentence because someone had smiled at her. 

"Annabeth," she said, as calmly as she could. "I-I usually look better than this, I swear." 

Percy - Percy; the name suited him - glanced down at her. A sweater that was unflattering but comfortable enough that she hadn't thrown it out and jeans with a scrape on the thigh. Ah, shit. 

"It's a look," he said finally. 

Annabeth gave him a withering look. "I appreciate it." 

Percy shrugged. "I try." He pursed his lips, as if waiting for her to speak. "Well," he continued. "I, uh, I should go. I have to grab some drinks and I'm already late." 

"Sure, sure," Annabeth repeated. "Thanks again." 

He nodded politely before he turned around and headed in the opposite direction. Annabeth stared at his retreating back. 

Today had been a terrible day. That didn't mean it had to keep going that way. 

"Damn it," Annabeth muttered under her breath as she surged forward. "Hey, Percy!" 

He turned on his heel, a knowing grin on his face. "Yes?" 

Annabeth stuffed her hands in the pockets of her jeans. "Um," she painfully forced the words out. "Do you want to get coffee?" Her heart hammered wildly against her ribcage, her stomach caging in a zoo of butterflies. 

"Are you asking me out?" 

Annabeth paused. "That depends." 

"On what?"

"If you say 'yes'." 

"I could get coffee," Percy agreed. 

She arched an eyebrow. "I thought you had something to get to." 

"I do," he said sheepishly. "But this sounds much better."


	2. When Did We Get Here?

...87 members in total were arrested with ties to the aforementioned crime families, prosecuted under claims ranging from battery and assault to aiding and abetting kidnappings-

Annabeth shook her head. 

Every single word she was reading off the screen of her laptop was going in one ear and out the other. Focus was especially elusive today, and she'd read the same sentence about five times today. 

The pan on the stove sizzled. 

She glanced up. Percy stood by the kitchen island, expertly mixing the lobster bisque together. The orange colour was so vibrant and mouth-watering it made Annabeth want to punch a wall. 

Add that to the list of "Things Percy can do and Annabeth can't" - cooking. 

The oil sizzled and jumped. Annabeth bit back a 'would you stop that'. She couldn't exactly tell him to stop because she'd been bugging him to take over dinner duties this week so she could work on her new case. 

It had taken far too much begging and a heated argument for him to finally relent. That was the problem with Percy. 

So many things about him ticked her off. Obviously, that wasn't a good thing to think about someone you'd been married to for-for almost 5 years. Wow. She hadn't realised it had been that long. 

3 months after Annabeth met Percy, he proposed. It wasn't as much of the whirlwind-romance it sounded like. The proposal had happened in the middle of an argument - a screaming match, to be specific - when Percy demanded why she had to be so stubborn, and Annabeth retorted that he should leave before he got stuck with her, and Percy said that he wished he'd be stuck with her for the rest of his life. 

And then, bam, another 3 months later they were married in a small ceremony in a pavilion on Long Island. Annabeth met Percy's mother for the first time at the wedding. Sally was a dream. 

That was the thing about Percy, though. He annoyed her, yes, he always had, but it had always been in an endearing way because he was just so damn perfect she couldn't ignore it. 

Perfect Percy, that was her friend Piper's nickname for him. Absolutely gorgeous - dark hair, sparkling green eyes and a grin that made Annabeth melt inside. Hard-working and determined - he was a marine biologist and researcher at NYU. Respectful - always held the door open for her when she got into the car. Kind - she'd seen him befriend every dog he came across. 

And Annabeth kept a list of all those things in a nook in her brain, titled "Reasons I'm Still Here" - the List. 

Because the deep, dark truth was that, despite how perfect Percy was, Annabeth just wasn't...well, she simply wasn't in love with him anymore. 

It wasn't like she hated him. Annabeth loved Percy, of course, she did. She was his wife; it was kind of her job. But it was 75% obligatory, and sort of like white noise that had faded into the background and didn't really come into play with other aspects of her life. 

They climbed into the same bed every night; Annabeth had her side of the bed and he had his (it was strewn with pictures of his mother and step-dad, a messy heap of his own belongings including his keys and wallet, and a packet of crisps). They shared a bank account, shared life insurance, took turns driving the car. They had date night once a month - a habit Annabeth had insisted they keep. 

But she just wasn't as in love as she should be. There had been a time where Annabeth would brighten up just from being in the same room as Percy. Her father used to describe her as a sunflower who had been kept in a cupboard all night finally being placed out in a garden. Annabeth now imagined herself as a sunflower that wilted because it didn't have enough water. 

That had also been the same time Percy would rush home to be with her, kiss her as he burst through the door, and bring her donuts during late nights at the office. 

It wasn't the end of the world. Percy was a nice guy - as mentioned before. He was the nicest guy, actually. He got along with all her friends, coworkers, even her family whom Annabeth found absolutely insufferable. Percy was almost too perfect to be true. 

He also carried the groceries in when she got back from the supermarket. Annabeth added that to list. 

Everyone told her that she was so lucky to have found a guy like him. Annabeth reminded herself that every day. But there had to be a point where she had to look at herself and realise that she was more in love with the idea of what they were than Percy himself. 

On paper, they were brilliant together. But in reality...not so much. 

Annabeth took this chance to glance up at her husband. 

Percy was tossing a mass of lobster pasta, but on the right and left stovetops were a steak and a mushroom stew. Cooking was his way of compartmentalising. Multitasking took his mind off whatever the problem at hand was. 

Annabeth had noticed it over the years. Percy was anxious about something. 

Of course, he hadn't said anything to her. It had been months past them confiding in each other without the other's prompting. 

Now that she thought about it, Percy had seemed anxious yesterday too. 

"Hey, are you done?" Percy called out from the kitchen. 

Annabeth blinked. Snapping out of her daze, Annabeth averted her eyes to her screen. No. Nowhere near done. "Yeah." She'd have to stay up tonight and finish her review of the case. 

"Can you set the table?" he asked. "I've gotta take this call." 

Annabeth nodded, her gaze following him as he grabbed his phone off the counter and walked out into the garden. She was out of earshot, but Annabeth could see him pick up the call before running a hand through his hair, brow creased - a clear sign of worry. 

In the back of her mind, Annabeth wondered if it was work. But she knew that if she prodded it, Percy would shutter and they would fight. And she was too tired to fight. She was always too tired to fight. 

Stifling a yawn, Annabeth used the table to hoist herself to her feet, clearing aside her work stuff to the end of the dining table as she started to arrange the placemats and cutlery. 

She had to admit that the pasta smelled delicious. Annabeth added it to the List - 'phenomenal cooking'. Yes, definitely a reason to stay in a marriage. 

The words itself made Annabeth feel guilty. No, she didn't want to leave Percy. That was taking her feelings and escalating them, pushing her to the brink. She wasn't quite there yet. 

Maybe Percy was though. Annabeth glanced him Percy once more. He was pacing across the grass, boring holes into the soil. Annabeth gritted her teeth; she'd told him so many times not to do that. 

If Percy couldn't see that they were drifting apart, then he had to be blinder than a bat. Percy was oblivious about a lot of things, but he wasn't stupid. She caught him gazing at her with a sort of regret-filled, wistful look sometimes. She knew he was feeling it too - the question was how long were they willing to ignore the elephant in the room for? 

Annabeth had always been competitive. That became an issue when she began dating Percy, who was as rock-hard stubborn as she was, in a different way, but still just as obstinate. So she wasn't going to be the first to confront the problem. 

She averted her gaze as Percy stepped back into the house, looking like he'd just seen a ghost. In fact, he was a shade of green matching his eyes. 

"So," Annabeth paused. "Problem at work?" She pulled out a chair - the same chair on the same side of the table, always closest to the laundry room - and slid into the seat. 

Percy took his place across from her. He met her eyes, but there something unreadable about them. "Yeah. Boss is...getting on my back." 

"Really." Annabeth didn't know how to comment about more than that. Percy was a marine biology. He worked in research at a university. He chose this job knowing how boring it was (at least to her). What more was there to comment on? "

Percy nodded absently, dishing out pasta onto his plate. He handed her the serving spoon and fork. "Drew's trying to get everyone to sign a petition telling Octavian to back off." 

"Really," Annabeth repeated, stabbing at her lobster with a scowl. 

The corner of his mouth twitched. 

Percy knew that she had a problem with Drew. Drew had had a thing for Percy way back when - and she wasn't the only one of his colleagues to have that issue, there had also been Reyna, Calypso, and the list went on. Him mentioning her was definitely a move to distract or piss Annabeth off. 

"Drew," she spat distastefully. 

Percy released a low snicker. He knew that being territorial was one of her biggest problems. Annabeth couldn't help her own small humorous smile. 

A fleeting moment of camaraderie passed between them. But it disappeared as quickly as it happened.   
And they were back to awkward silence. 

"I've been assigned to a new case at work," Annabeth said, mostly for the sake of saying something so they didn't have to sit in absolute boredom for the next half an hour. "It's a big one too. Nico, Piper and I are the only junior associates on it." 

Percy hummed in agreement. His phone on the table had lit up, the screen displaying a message. 

Annabeth couldn't help her gaze curiously drifting over to it. But Percy noticed, and his hand shot out to turn it over, the glass facing down. 

What was he so insistent on hiding from her? 

He looked back at her, politely asking, "What's the case about?" 

Annabeth pursed her lips. "Doesn't matter."


	3. Drinks On Me and My Misery

The sound of a mug slamming down on the table snapped Annabeth out of her reverie. Next came a stack of papers and a laptop. 

Annabeth blinked and glanced up as Nico di Angelo yanked a chair out and slumped into it, pressing his forehead into his hands. 

"Shut up," he muttered immediately. 

Her jaw dropped. "I didn't even say anything!" 

Nico rolled his eyes. "I can hear you thinking." The thing about Nico was that his humour was so dark and so niche that only a handful of people could tell when he was joking. Annabeth considered herself one of the people who understood him; they got along well, for coworkers. She had spent many Christmas parties with Percy at her side being terrified of this 5-foot-6, pale man. 

"And what's wrong with you?" Annabeth demanded, crossing her arms. Out of all the junior associates the firm had taken in last year, she had fought tooth-and-nail just to get on this case, and she knew that Nico had too. She'd worked late hours, appeased Mr D's every single silly request, churned out endless reports to Mr Brunner, all to be here. "Don't tell me you want off the case?" 

"Please." Nico righted himself. He picked disdainfully at his case files. "I tried to say 'Hello' to Will, but I got stuck between 'Hello' and 'Morning' - trying to be casual, right? - and said 'Mellow'." 

Annabeth held a snicker in so hard she almost popped an eardrum. Will Solace and Nico's office romance moved about as quickly as a snail. Both of them had been sneaking glances since Nico's first day. Will was in admin, so Nico passed his desk every time he walked into the office, but he wasn't exactly...the smoothest person around. 

Another chair scraped against the floor as the third and last junior associate on the case took her seat - Piper McLean. When Annabeth first met Piper, she had been so envious of the other woman she almost turned green. There was just something about Piper that was so...effortless. Her Cherokee braids swung over her shoulder as she sat down, not a speck of make-up on her face yet looking like she was the main character in a movie. Piper also had a work ethic that surpassed even Annabeth's - "she works harder than the devil", Nico had said. She had a bubbly personality and energy that only came from not being in a tiresome marriage, and she reminded Annabeth of every girl she had hated in high school. 

"Am I late?" Piper asked worriedly, pulling her laptop open. Her background was of her with an older man who was probably her father, holding a puppy in her arms and beaming at the camera. 

"No. You're right on time," Nico said through gritted teeth. 

Piper rolled her eyes. "Stop with the animosity. It isn't a good look on you." 

"I hate you," Nico grumbled. 

"No, you don't." 

The three of them had bonded over being the only junior associates picked for the case, and Annabeth would gladly give them the award for "most unlikely trio". 

The front door slammed shut as the two managing partners of Chiron & Dionysus entered the room. A hush fell over the gathered lawyers. 

Annabeth did a quick headcount of the room. Three associates - herself, Piper and Nico. Two barristers, Clarisse La Rue and Apollo. Annabeth marvelled at the sight of them; Apollo was an old name in the firm, infamous for his charming manner and Clarisse was only a couple years older than Annabeth but known for her rigorous, unrelenting attacks in the courtroom. A few solicitors she recognised; Luke Castellan, Charles Beckendorf, and, urgh, Hera. Hera Clarkson was one of the highest-ranked attorneys in the firm, and a major pain in Annabeth's ass. The woman had nothing better to do than give Annabeth ugly looks simply because she'd had the guts to call Hera on a mistake in a case from months ago. She was tall, tanned and regal, and probably someone whose bad side Annabeth should avoid. 

"So," Mr D - Dionysus, a co-founder of the firm - clasped his hands together. "You've all been given a briefing. This is a big case for us and I won't have any of you screw it up-"

Mr Brunner - though everyone called him Chiron, the other co-founder - cleared his throat. "Mr D, maybe we should...ah, elaborate a bit more." 

The two of them shared a moment's silence. She had no idea how two men who were so vastly different were ever able to work together. Annabeth's gaze flickered between them, imagining a staring contest. Apparently, Chiron won. 

Mr D spread his hands reluctantly. "Be my guest." 

Chiron, suppressing a smile, rolled his wheelchair to the front of the room. "As you all will have read from the short emails, this is a strange case. It's a public defence case, and usually would be handed off to a state attorney, but because it's so important, we've been asked to give counsel and work together with the state department on it.

"It's a case involving the crime families in New York City - the American mafia, if you really want to call it that," he said. "I'm sure you know of them." 

Annabeth nodded, peripherally seeing everyone doing the same. Underground crime in New York was hardly a secret. There were five families - Gambino, Lucchese, Genovese, Bonanno, and Colombo.

They dealt in organised crime, traded on the black market, and were notoriously impossible to persecute for a multitude of reasons. Number one; there was no way to know exactly who was part of it. The leaders changed frequently - leadership handed over whenever the head of the family died, most recently Frank Cali who was assassinated on Staten Island last year. 

Number two; the lack of a case. Law enforcement tended not to meddle with the crime families, but occasionally, they would cross the line enough for a reasonable case to be built. 

Annabeth had done the reading for the case - less than a decade ago, there had been a huge round-up of almost 100 mobsters all over the country, members from every single family. 

The hardest hit had been the Colombo family - Carmine Persico had been the family head at the time, and he was convicted of multiple crimes, including racketeering, conspiracy, hijacking and drug smuggling, enough to send him to prison on multiple life sentences. 

"You'll also know," Chiron continued. "About the legal cases involving the crime families from the past. There aren't many, and the closest reference we have is the drug bust of 2014." 

Apollo raised a hand, reclining in his seat as he eyed his papers thoughtfully. "I don't understand what we're supposed to be doing. You've given us a million case studies on the crime families, told us that it's usually handled by the government, and now what? We're a private prosecution firm - we do civil law and suing, not trying to take down mobsters." 

"Let the man finish," Hera said, shooting Apollo a withering look. 

Chiron waited for a second for Apollo to settle down before he carried on, "I'm almost to the point. Be patient. The Colombo family was nearly destroyed after the drug bust. Their figurehead was in jail, their ranks depleted. But they've resurfaced. The FBI has traced an increasing number of crimes back to them, and its believed that Theodore Persico, Carmine's nephew, has taken up the mantle." 

Annabeth glanced down at the notes she'd scribbled into the margins of her papers. 

Suspected in-fighting between Genovese and Colombo, circa 1990. 

Dark web dealings - Lucchese. 

"The FBI is building a case against Persico," Chiron said. "Theodore," he added for clarification. "Apparently he's getting bolder, surer of passing under the radar. The FBI have made him a top-level threat. He's been dealing in crimes outside the norm - we're looking at possible convictions of manslaughter, assassination, illegal organ trade." 

Luke frowned. "But why have we been brought in? Like you said before, the government deals with this." 

"Because this involves someone else," Annabeth realised with a start. Her voice brought on a pin-drop silence. She swallowed, feeling the stares boring into her. Annabeth forced herself to turn to look at Chiron. "Something else has happened. A civilian got involved, didn't they?" 

Chiron grimaced. "Unfortunately, you're right. That gas explosion that was on the news two weeks ago has been ruled as foul play. It killed four people - a family of two adults and two kids. The mother was Zoë Nightshade, a witness who testified against Carmine Persico during the drug bust." 

"Oh, shit," Clarisse said, aghast. "How is this not in the news?" 

"It's classified," Chiron said firmly. "In fact, everyone in this room is now under a non-disclosure agreement." 

Annabeth glanced to her left to see Piper leaning forward in her seat, intrigued. This was far more than she'd signed up for, but Annabeth couldn't help the adrenaline rush that came with it. 

A real, proper case. Her first one, and it was good, too. 

"The Nightshade family have hired us," Chiron explained. "They're rich and well-known in the circle of the upper class. The FBI and the state attorneys have agreed to work with us." 

"This is ridiculous," Apollo said, clasping his hands together. "Thinking we can take down one America's crime bosses is ridiculous." 

"Since when did you adopt a "no can do" attitude," Mr D snapped. "It's a case. You're employees. You act like you have a say in this." 

Chiron broke in with a nervous chuckle. "Now, that's not the way I would put it-" The room burst into commotion, a flurry of messy conversations and animated discussion. 

Annabeth turned to Piper, her eyes glinting with interest. "Finally, something interesting." 

|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|

"To organised crime!" Nico whispered, clinking his shot glass against Annabeth's. 

She laughed, downing the tequila in one go, the liquid burning her throat. She was still giddy from the briefing earlier today, itching to get back to her desk and power through the night. Unfortunately, her friends were insistent on "rest" - whatever that was - and she'd been dragged to a bar with them. 

Aside from Nico and Piper, she was flanked by an assortment of her colleagues. Will, Nico's not-so-secret crush, Rachel the receptionist, Thalia, Mr D's PA who by a miracle hadn't been fired yet, and Frank the paralegal whose job no one knew. Annabeth and Nico had been taking bets on what exactly he did for the firm for the last month and neither of them knew who was winning. 

"Why are we here?" Rachel moaned, resting her chin on her chin. "We work 9 hours a day and it's finally the weekend." 

"Had a bad week," Thalia said sullenly, folding her arms. 

"Don't want to go home," Annabeth muttered, fiddling with her empty glass. 

"What?" Piper asked her incredulously. "You don't want to go home to Perfect Percy?" 

"If you don't want him, I'll take him," Nico mused. When he received several wide-eyed stares, Nico blinked. "That-that was a joke." 

Annabeth slumped back in her seat. "Things haven't been...great between us lately." For a long time, actually. She couldn't pinpoint the exact moment it happened but-it had. 

"Are you fighting a lot?" Frank asked, the only person here empathetic with her plight. "I mean, you both have quite strong personalities. I could see why you'd clash." 

"Except that's not even it," Annabeth sighed. She raised another glass to her lips and took her next shot. "We aren't even fighting; neither of us can even be bothered to fight." 

At this point, Annabeth would take fighting over not speaking at all. Just to have some sort of interaction. 

Will eyed her carefully. "But...when was the last time you guys...you know." 

Annabeth brushed a hand across her face. God, she couldn't even remember. There had been that time two months ago. But it had been half-hearted and started with the extremely romantic "Hey, wanna do it?" on Percy's end. 

Thalia made a face. "That bad, huh." 

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I came out tonight to feel less monotonous than usual. It isn't working. I'm going home." She grabbed her bag and slid off the barstool.


	4. No Such Thing As Coincidence

Annabeth's keys jingled in the lock when she got home. The house was silent. 

She kicked her shoes off and peered round the first floor. No one in sight. 

Then she heard him. Percy was leaning against the kitchen door, hand grasping his phone and held up to his ear, his brow was creased with evident worry and he was violently gnawing on his lip. 

"Percy?" Annabeth said before she could catch herself. 

In a flash, Percy's gaze flickered to her and he hung up the phone, setting it down on the dining table. 

She walked over to the living room, setting her bag down. "What's going on?" 

"Work stuff," he said dismissively, walking towards the oven. It was casserole tonight. "Nothing to worry about." 

Annabeth arched an eyebrow. If Percy was going to lie to her, he should at least put in some effort. This way it was just insulting. 

Percy disappeared into the kitchen, and Annabeth's gaze sidled over to his phone. 

What was going on? This was the second time in two days she'd walked in on an anxious phone call. 

A jarring thought lodged itself in Annabeth's mind. What if he was cheating on her? Her gaze snapped to the kitchen. 

Honestly, as much as she tried to generate some anger at the thought, Annabeth didn't really care. She couldn't even be bothered to fight with him or to confront him about lying. 

Annabeth shoved that idea out of her head. Despite everything, Percy was still Percy. Inherently, he was loyal and he would probably die before he even thought about cheating on her. Even if it was more for the contract than the vows. 

Percy brought the food out in the next few minutes, dishing out servings to either of them. 

"So," Percy paused. "How was your day?" 

Annabeth blinked. Did he really-was he-

"Um, okay," Annabeth said, giving him a suspicious look. Something was definitely going on, and she hated being kept in the dark. "Really good case at work. Went out for drinks after." 

Another moment of silence. 

Annabeth turned her hands over in her lap awkwardly, wracking her brain for just about anything to say. "Will and Nico still won't admit their feelings. Thalia's putting a pause on flings. Um, I think on the way home someone was probably following me-"

"What?" 

Annabeth paused. "Nothing serious. I mean, it's happened before. Manhattan isn't exactly the safest place on earth, you know. Plus, I was passing through Harlem." 

"No, you have to tell me things like this," Percy snapped. 

Annabeth glared. "What is wrong with you?" she demanded. "We barely look at each other half the time! Once, I said 'green eggs and ham' to see if you were paying attention and you didn't even blink an eye! And then you have to be insufferable on a day when I'm already exhausted-"

"No, stop, please stop," Percy groaned, slumping into his seat. He looked paler than usual. "You're tired, I'm tired. We've had long days. Let's just eat." 

Annabeth bit back a retort. We don't even have the energy to fight, she wanted to scream. But instead she nodded and looked down at her own food. 

Annabeth rattled off the List again; respectful, opens car doors, cooks well, kind. Yes, that was it. 

|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|

The weekend flashed by. Annabeth saw Percy a total of three times. She kept a tally in her head. One out of three times he was on the phone, talking in low murmurs. The other two times were at meals. 

Annabeth didn't know what was going on, but she was growing more and more certain that something was going on. Percy had been anxiously speaking to someone for the last week, and she had no idea what it was about. 

It couldn't be his family. Sally and Paul adored her. They would talk to her about it. Annabeth wondered if it was work, but this didn't strike as something professional. Work troubles weren't something he would hide from her. It had to be something more personal. 

"Would you stop that?" Nico practically snarled. 

Annabeth stopped clicking her pen. "Sorry."

Her laptop screen had gone dark again. She was supposed to be conducting research on the case, finding contacts of Zoë Nightshade she could get testimonies from. But the woman was like some CIA agent. No social media account - not even LinkedIN. There wasn't anything on her at all, except for a mention on her high school's website. 

Annabeth rubbed at her eyes. She hadn't been sleeping well lately, a result of her Percy problem, as she was calling it. 

Her gaze roved over the website. 

Goode High School netball team-

Annabeth's breath caught in her throat. 

What? 

She clicked on the link, nails curling in to press into her palms. Goode High School was where Percy went to school. He was only a year below Zoë. 

Percy knew Zoë? 

Annabeth frowned. Could all his phone calls have something to do with her? If they were close, surely the death of his friend would be a plausible cause of something like this. 

But Percy had never mentioned the Nightshades before. In fact, Percy never talked about high school. Never talked about college before his doctorate. Never talked about his life before he met her. 

Then again, Annabeth hadn't told him much about hers either. She didn't get along with her family - he knew that - she grew up in San Francisco and had a dog until she 5 and he died. That was it. 

In the throes of their relationship, Annabeth had felt like she was surrounded by a whirlwind. They kissed and slept together and took spontaneous road trips together. But then they got married and things very quickly settled into the manner that they were today. Around three years, Annabeth mused. That was a long time to live in a loveless relationship. 

"Annabeth," Piper snapped her out of her reverie. 

Annabeth glanced up. "What?" 

Piper pointed to the television. It hung high on the wall in the room of office cubicles. "Isn't that near Percy's work?" 

The headline on CNN read 'Active shooter near Morningside Park'. 

A shiver rippled from head to toe as Annabeth's stomach churned enough that she almost threw up. 

"The university's right next to the park," Annabeth stammered. "Oh my God." 

The reporter continued, "...the shooter has been confirmed to be inside the faculty buildings at Columbia University-"

Annabeth stood up abruptly, feeling several pairs of eyes on her. Piper looked sympathetic, but the rest of her co-workers had expressions of pity. 

"Excuse me," she muttered, shoving her phone and purse into her pocket as she stalked towards the door. 

Annabeth didn't allow herself to break into a run until she was out of the building. 

Her feet slammed into the pavement as Annabeth tried to type with trembling fingers. She impatiently sifted through her contacts to find Percy's number, swallowing down her fear. 

Before she could even dial, her phone started to ring. The name 'Percy' appeared on her screen. 

"Annabeth-"

"Percy!" Annabeth bit the inside of her mouth. "Tell me you're at home. Tell me you didn't go into work today." 

She was met with silence. 

"You saw the news," he said warily. 

"I was about to call you. What's going on?" 

"I-I don't know," Percy said worriedly. "Look, they're trying to evacuate us. The police are in, trying to get the situation under control. I don't think the shooter's in the building-" He broke off, and Annabeth heard him release a shaky breath. "I have to hang up now, Annabeth. I-I have to tell you-"

"I'm coming," she said firmly. Annabeth tilted her head up; unconsciously she'd walked right to the train station. "You don't get to act like you're about to die." 

"No, Annabeth." His voice was pained. "You don't understand-"

"Then you can tell me tonight," she said sharply. "Over dinner. Pasta tonight, right?" 

Another best of silence. "Yeah, pasta. Spaghetti bolognaise." 

"Great," Annabeth replied, tapping her card on the gate. "Be careful, Percy." 

"Thank you, Annabeth," Percy said quietly. 

The line clicked off. 

No "I love you", Annabeth noticed. For once she didn't dwell on it. She didn't care. All she needed was to get there and make sure that her husband was still in one piece. 

Annabeth couldn't stop clenching and unclenching her jaw as the train simply trundled along its route, unaware of the situation she was in. 

Annabeth checked the news updates. They'd cordoned off the entire area around the campus, which meant that she'd have to get out a while away and get there on foot. 

Once the train arrived, Annabeth raced out, heart hammering as she made her up aboveground. Greenery and concrete blurred into the background as Annabeth made her way towards the school. 

She refused to think about the worst case scenario. There had always been gun violence in New York, but Annabeth had never thought that either of them would be affected by it. 

She had been Percy's last call. He could've called anyone, but he called her. That had to count for something, right? 

Unfortunately, all that did was make Annabeth feel guilty for how bad things were between them. 

Annabeth knew she was getting closer to the epicentre of the commotion because the noise got louder; frantic shouts and hysteria. The news had been right - the area was cordoned. Annabeth could see reporters standing in front of the site, holding microphones, with the camera crew standing by. 

Police officers stood by the yellow tape, telling everyone to stand back and away from the scene. Annabeth waded to the tape, snapping her head around to scan her surroundings for Percy. Some distraught students were embracing, having just been evacuated and probably scared out of their minds (like she was).

Annabeth leaned over the tape and called, "Hey! Hey!" The nearest police officer glanced her way. 

"Has the shooter been apprehended yet?" she demanded. 

"Ma'am, just wait-"

"Don't "ma'am" me," Annabeth snapped. "Look, my husband is in there right now. In the faculty building. All I need to know is if he's-"

A rush of people from the campus appeared round the end from behind one of the buildings. Annabeth's heart nearly skipped a beat when she recognised Silena at the head of the crowd - a microbiologist who worked on Percy's floor. 

"Silena!" Annabeth yelled. "Silena! Have you seen Percy? Have you seen Percy?" 

The policemen were opening up the tape for them to pass through, forcing Annabeth to take a step back. But she didn't stop looking for him. 

Annabeth fumbled for her phone, shakily pressing the numbers to call him. As it rang, Annabeth felt something cold settle in her stomach. He wasn't picking up. 

Amidst the crowd, Annabeth spotted a familiar head of dark hair and her knees almost gave out. He spotted her at the same time, and surged forward. 

Annabeth shoved her phone in her pocket before Percy reached her, flinging her arms around his neck as he threw his around her waist. 

"Oh my God," she whispered, holding him tight as she squeezed her eyes shut. Her heartbeat was starting to slow again, but the adrenaline was making her feel light-headed. 

"I thought I'd never see you again," she heard him murmur. 

This feeling of immense relief was enough to make her float and enough to make up for a terrible day. Annabeth added it to the List.


	5. Not So Perfect After All

Annabeth wished she could say that the active shooter situation had solved all her problems — a weird, sort of tone-deaf sentence that made her loathe her conceitedness. 

But that sentence would be true in a movie. A single moment, basking in each other's presence, would be enough to heal a rift that had formed over years. 

Sadly, it didn't work that way in real life. 

It had been good, sure. For about 5 minutes. Percy hadn't let her go, keeping his hand in hers even as he told her about everything that had happened. The weight of his gaze hurt, but Annabeth didn't care because he was alive and that was all that mattered. 

But then he stepped aside to make a call and that was it. The distance between them exploded into a million miles. He returned from the call pale and was absent for the remainder of their drive home, answering her questions with monosyllabic answers. 

By the time they got home, Annabeth stormed upstairs, not bothering to say a word to him. 

A week passed before something else unsettling occurred. 

Annabeth took the train today. Usually, she drove to work, but Percy needed the car today for whatever reason, so she was taking the train in his place. 

She really didn't like taking the train. 

There were the men who eyed her in a way that made her shift uncomfortably, the gum-stained floor of the station and the stuffy, claustrophobic, hotness of the train carriage. 

For a second, Annabeth forgave Percy for being such a massive dick all the time — it was probably because of the train. 

She put her earbuds in, but unlike her car where she could sing or hum as she drove, she had to sit rigidly and stare at the train map. 

The time between each station felt like an hour. She fidgeted, tapping her fingers against the side of her thigh impatiently. A pair of heels were in her bag for her to change into when she got to work, but right now she was wearing comfortable shoes and Annabeth took a moment to appreciate that. 

Then the lights flickered off. 

Between blinks, Annabeth and the entire train carriage was plunged in darkness. She turned to her right, seeing similar confusion on the other passengers' faces.

There was a horrid screeching noise as the train came to a halt, the sudden jolt almost stopping some people. 

Annabeth swivelled her head left and right. What was going on? Some kind of power malfunction? 

Whispers filled the carriage as people or students who knew each other started to talk. 

Annabeth wished she had someone else with her right now. Train malfunctions weren't that scary, but it wasn't very nice sitting alone in the dark, not knowing what was happening. 

She stared at her hands. Annabeth tried not to use her phone in the train, not wanting to be labelled a target by pickpockets. But if she was going to be here in the dark for a while...

"Please stay calm," the conductor's voice crackled through the speakers. "The carriage in front of you is experiencing a problem. We are investigating now." 

"Investigating?" Annabeth murmured. What? 

Chatter arose all around her, and the noise was deafening as voices rocketed from hushed whispers to a deafening hubbub as people began to do the exact opposite of staying calm. 

"Excuse me?" Annabeth asked, tapping a stranger on the shoulder. "What-what's going on?" 

The man turned around from his friend, frowning. "They're saying it's a bomb threat in the next carriage." 

Annabeth's hand went slack. In any other circumstance, her first instinct would be to get the hell out of here. Maybe try to pry open the carriage doors as some of the other passengers were doing. 

But she'd thought Percy was about to be gunned down yesterday. These kinds of things didn't just happen two days in a row. She'd seen the statistics; you were more likely to get struck by lightning thrice than be in a terrorist attack — or something ridiculous like that. 

Too many things were happening. Far too many. 

That was exactly what Annabeth told Piper when she finally got into work, about two hours late. 

Fortunately, whatever happened on the train had been resolved, and Annabeth explained to her how she'd been stuck in that dumb carriage for over an hour, in pitch-black darkness and a pit of anxiety in her stomach. 

"There are just—" Annabeth cut herself off, aware of how insane she sounded. "Too many bad things happening, Piper. Either I have the worst luck of anyone, or—"

Piper cocked her head to the side. "Or what?" 

Annabeth hesitated. How well did she really know Piper? Was the other woman about to report her to Chiron for not being of sound mind to get a leg up in the firm? 

The immediate answer that came to her head was 'no'. As cutthroat as Piper was, Annabeth knew that between the two of them she herself was much more likely to do that. 

"Percy's been acting weirdly," Annabeth finally admitted. "He-he's always on the phone. Always looks like he just saw a ghost or heard about someone's death." She scowled. "He's a marine biologist, Piper. What the hell does he have to be stressed about? Oh no, some animal has gills?" 

Piper gave her an amused look. "I guess Perfect Percy isn't so perfect after all." 

Annabeth set her things down on her desk. "I told you to stop calling him that." She slumped into her seat. "I just hate being out of the loop. I hate not knowing things. And I'm going to find out what's going on. These events are linked — I swear. Percy's hiding something from me, and I'm going to find out what it is." 

"Okay, Nancy Drew," Piper scoffed before she swivelled in her seat to face her laptop again. 

|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|

When Annabeth stepped into the house, she was ready to collapse and sleep through the entirety of the weekend. 

Of course, the universe and fate had made a collective decision to ruin her life, so that wasn't happening. 

Instead, Annabeth got an email that made her go light-headed. 

Dear Ms Chase, 

A large transaction today was made from your shared bank account by account holder Percy Jackson—

Annabeth eyes widened, the light from her phone burning into her retinas. Please be fraud, she thought desperately. 

She gripped onto the stairwell bannister for support, sure her knees were about to give out. 

"Percy!" Annabeth yelled, her voice reverberating throughout the house at an octave higher than usual. Her hands trembled as she took shallow breaths, her bag lying on the floor, forgotten. 

Footsteps pounded until Percy appeared at the top of the staircase, clearly fresh out of the shower, looking too bloody good in wet hair for someone who was about to be murdered. 

"Get down here, get down here now," she repeated, voice shaking. "Get down here so I can kick your ass." 

To her credit, Percy blanched as if he was actually afraid of her. Annabeth felt a small jolt of satisfaction. 

Annabeth stormed into the kitchen. She didn't want to do this where the neighbours could hear them. 

Percy followed her. "Annabeth, you're scaring me. What's going on?" 

"I'm scaring you?" she demanded hysterically. "What are you—What do you—I'm talking about this!" 

Annabeth thrust her phone in his face, the email open. Percy scanned the lines on the email, his cheeks paling. 

"It's my bank account too, Percy," she practically snarled. "Did you really think they wouldn't contact me after you took out over a third of our money?" 

Percy looked like he wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it for the foreseeable future. 

Annabeth tossed her phone to the side. It skittered across the kitchen counter. "I have been trying to avoid a fight with you for months," she spat venomously. "You didn't do the dishes, so I did them. You forgot to separate the laundry that one time and I didn't say anything! I was too tired—couldn't be bothered to start a fight I didn't want to finish!" 

Percy opened his mouth to say something, but Annabeth surged on before he could stop her, "But I'm not too tired today! In fact, I've had an exhausting week, and the one time I just need you to be as perfect with me as you are with the rest of the damn world—you go and pull something like this!" 

Her chest heaved as Annabeth caught her breath. Percy's fear had faded into a guilty look. 

"So why the hell did you do this?" she said breathlessly, crossing her arms and fixing him with a shrivelling glare. 

Percy murmured something unintelligible. 

"Speak up," Annabeth snapped. She was not taking any of his nonsense today. 

He swallowed. "It's my third." 

A heartbeat of silence passed between them. 

"What?" Annabeth enunciated. 

"The third of the money I took out," Percy clarified. "We've been paying in parts of our salaries every month since we were dating." 

Annabeth flinched at the mention of their relationship, and she saw Percy pull a face at the word. 

Dating Percy and Annabeth would've never had this problem. They were too caught up in each other to face reality. 

"That is your razor-thin argument?" Annabeth released a mirthless laugh. "Not even an apology? Not even as explanation as to why?" Her voice rose with each syllable, until she was yelling at him, and that was it for them, really. 

"What, are you gearing up to run out on me?" she snorted. "Because I trusted that you'd have the balls to tell me you want a divorce straight to my face! But no! Go ahead and disappear in the middle of the night!" 

"It's money I put in," Percy emphasised. "It's mine — why can't I take it out? I choose what I want to do with it! I never ask you to tell me every little bit of your expenditure!" 

"Do not try to turn this on me!" she shouted. "The most I've ever spent was on a pair of heels to wear to work! Not thousands like you've just done! Taking out money we were—we were saving—"

"Saving for what?" Percy retorted. "For kids? Because this really is the best home for children!" 

"Wasn't that the plan?" Annabeth growled. 

"Four years ago it was!" Percy gestured agitatedly. "Don't lie to me, Annabeth, you want kids even less than I do right now. We fight all the time!" 

"Fine! Fine!" Annabeth seethed. "There is no way in hell we are bringing babies into the equation with this sham of a marriage!" 

And there it was. The words were out. 

Annabeth blinked back tears. Damn it. She argued for a living; this should not be a problem for her. 

Percy looked like he'd just been slapped. In fact, the only thing lacking was a big red handprint on his cheek. 

Surely they'd both thought it. Countless times over the years. But neither of them had been willing to say it, because once it was said, there was no going back to the fragile peace they'd built for themselves. 

Annabeth rubbed furiously at her eyes. Come on. 

"You said it," Percy said quietly, the dip in volume leaving a ringing noise in Annabeth's ears. "You said it. You don't get to be upset—"

"Yes, I do," Annabeth said shortly. "We were fine before you did this—"

"Fine?" Percy said incredulously. "We haven't been fine for a long time. We argue all the time!" 

"Because you always do stupid things like this!" Annabeth said helplessly. "You-you don't talk to me anymore! And I want to know, Percy! You, of all people, should know that I hate being out of the loop." 

She yanked at her jacket frustratedly. "You almost died yesterday, and this morning I could've too — and I want to know what's going on! I'm your wife, Percy! You owe me at least that much!" 

"You're my wife because of a legally-binding document we signed five years ago," Percy said through gritted teeth. He had stiffened since Annabeth had admitted the one thing they'd spent years avoiding, and he didn't look like he was ever going to recover. Annabeth knew she'd never forget how gutted he looked. Like someone had ran him right through with a sword and hadn't even bothered to pull it out. "Look me in the eye and tell me that you still love me. That you're still my wife in anything but name." 

Annabeth found herself drowning in green, and in that moment, she couldn't remember. Couldn't remember the List. Couldn't remember why she'd ever loved the man in front of her in the first place. The only things swimming before her eyes were an email and all the times Percy had shut her out. 

"Exactly," Percy said curtly. "'Wife' is just a title. I don't owe you anything." 

Annabeth forced her voice to remain steady. "I guess you don't." 

They stared at each other for a few more seconds. 

Is this it? Annabeth wondered. Would she look back on this moment in the years to come and know that this was when it all ended? 

Percy cracked first. He took a step back — away from her — and then turned his back on her, heading for the stairs. 

When she was sure he was out of sight and earshot, Annabeth sunk into a chair, elbows braced on the table and hands covering her eyes.


	6. The Obligation of Date Night

Annabeth's key jingled in the lock. 

Grocery bags were slung on either arm. Annabeth usually hated doing the shopping. But since their fight last night, she and Percy hadn't exchanged a single word, and she desperately needed to get out of his immediate radius. 

She turned the key and pushed the door open. 

Annabeth checked her watch. It was 11am. Was it bad that she hoped some fish emergency had drawn Percy away? 

Her gaze hovered over her wrist before it slid to a peculiar sight on the doorstep. There, right by her foot, between her shoes and Percy's shoes, was an unfamiliar pair of sneakers. Men's sneakers. 

Annabeth's brow furrowed. Was Percy's deep dark secret that he was gay? 

She peered into the house, now peripherally aware of the sounds coming from the kitchen and dining room. Clanging and...and talking. 

Annabeth had been joking earlier about the gay thing, but honestly, she didn't know what to expect anymore when it came to Percy. 

Kicking her shoes off, Annabeth slowly traipsed towards the kitchen, unsure of what she'd see. 

It was...even weirder than she'd expected. 

A ladder was stood up close to a wall, Percy perched on the top rung and installing a round, white, plastic object into the wall. 

Stabilising the ladder and conversing with Percy was a tall guy with blonde hair. He was taller than Percy, but lankier, and there was a small scar on his lip that gave him a sense of mystery. 

Annabeth glanced between them. "Um, what the hell is going on?" 

Percy looked down at her. Crap, Annabeth forgot that she was supposed to be ignoring him. Somehow, it was easier to forget the fight when the sun was up. He cleared his throat. "I'm installing an alarm system." 

Annabeth blinked. "You're what?" The was he said it was so off-handed, like "oh yeah, I have a pet barracuda now". 

"Lots of robberies in New York," the blonde man supplied helpfully. 

Annabeth folded her arms and glared at him. "And who exactly are you?" 

"I could ask you the same thing," he returned. 

"I'm Annabeth Chase," she scoffed. "Percy's-" Except the word 'wife' brought back too many memories from last night. Percy flinched from his position on the ladder. "I'm married to Percy," she said instead. 

"I'm Jason Grace," the man waved. "Percy's college roommate. And best friend." Percy rolled his eyes. 

Annabeth frowned. "Are-are you trying to be territorial right now? 

"Please," Jason snorted. "I lost to you when he moved out." 

Annabeth set the groceries down, still keeping a careful eye trained on the stranger in her living room. "I didn't know you had a college roommate." 

Percy scratched the back of his neck, gaze flickering between her and Jason. "Yeah, I, uh, we shared a room on campus and then an apartment." 

Annabeth started putting the cheese and wine into the fridge. Percy's story checked out so far. She'd only met him after his graduation, so if he was lying about Jason being his roommate then she wouldn't know. 

"So why are you setting up an alarm system?" Annabeth asked. 

"Robberies," Jason filled in again. 

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "We've lived here for years. Why set up an alarm system now?" 

"Can never be too careful," Jason said with a shrug. Percy hid a badly-concealed smile. 

Annabeth left soon after that. She had some work to do, and she didn't like the role of wall Jason took up when he was here. 

But when she came down later in the day, wanting to get a snack from the cupboard, Annabeth overheard a snippet of their conversation that only made her more confused. 

Her footsteps slowed as she heard their voices wafting in from the kitchen, the kitchen door just slightly ajar. 

"...you have to tell her," that was Jason, all solemn and unlike the persona she'd seen earlier. "Percy, I'm serious." 

Annabeth stopped by the stairs, waiting with bated breath for Percy to reply. She hated being reduced an eavesdropper but he really was leaving her no choice. It had been more than 12 hours since their blow-up argument and apparently his solution was to pretend it never happened. 

The "her" they were talking about could only be her. Annabeth liked to think that she was important enough in this situation. 

"I can't, Jason," Percy sighed. She couldn't see him, but Annabeth already knew he was pacing around the kitchen, and the rhythmic patter of footsteps she heard only confirmed her predictions. "She-she's safe now." 

"Percy, the woman hates you." 

Annabeth allowed herself a tired smile. At least someone was being blunt. 

"She doesn't hate me," came Percy uncertain reply. "Look, we-we're going through a rough patch now." His voice lowered further. Annabeth had to strain her ears to hear them. "When this is all over and done, she'll forgive me. I think we can-we can fix this. I don't think we'll ever-ever be able to go back to what it was. But I can fix this. Be friends, at least." 

"You won't be able to fix this," Jason said softly. "If you keep going on this way - you won't be able to fix this." 

Annabeth left then. She couldn't bear to hear things like this said about her, reluctantly agreeing with all of them, and not knowing why it was happening. 

What did Percy mean when he said she was 'safe'? Safe from what? 

|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|

Their Range Rover trundled along the road as they headed home. 

Annabeth glanced up at the driver's mirror - Percy's eyes were trained on the road. They sat in the car in silence. 

It was obligatory date night. They'd instated it years ago and hadn't bothered to retract it. Once a month, they had to have Date Night. Tonight they went out for dinner. It was Annabeth's turn to plan it and she figured that being in a public place would minimise the chance of a conversation escalating to another shouting match. 

Percy was perfectly polite. He asked about her week at work, about how she was getting on with her colleagues. Annabeth was too preoccupied with her own thoughts to give more than one-worded answers. She felt a little bad about it, but not too bad, because Percy deserved a little taste of what it felt like to be ignored. 

Jason's words had become ingrained into her head. Annabeth wished she'd had the courage to stay and hear the rest. She had a burning desire to know now, more so than before, knowing that she was involved. 

She risked another glance at Percy as he drove them home from the restaurant. If he thought he was protecting her from something, then he had a very twisted sense of right and wrong. 

You won't be able to fix this. 

Those has been Jason's exact words. He was right. Annabeth hated to admit it but even her patience wasn't enough for Percy. He'd pushed her too much lately. 

"So how come I've never met Jason?" Annabeth said suddenly, wanting to break the silence. "Never even heard of him, in fact." 

"Never brought him up," Percy said absently. 

"But he's your best friend," Annabeth pointed out. 

Percy didn't even look away from the road. "You never brought it up."

Annabeth folded her arms. "Because you clammed up anytime I even tried to ask about college. So I stopped asking."

Another moment of silence. 

"Percy." 

"Yes." 

Annabeth swallowed. "Why don't I know anything about your college life? And you can't say I never brought it up." 

"Well," Percy started. "That was before I met you." 

"But you know everything about me," Annabeth said with a frown. "About my horrendous college roommate. My high school. My middle school." She turned to the side to look at him. "Why don't I know anything about you?" 

"You know everything about me," Percy replied. 

"I didn't know about Jason." 

"I would argue that you know me better than anyone else does." 

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Really." Her insides felt like they were melting and she hated that. 

"Yes." 

"But I don't. Know anything about you, I mean." 

"You know the things that matter," Percy said. 

It was quite possibly the most vague answer Annabeth had ever heard from anyone - and she interviewed witnesses and murderers for cases - but it was the most Percy had told her in months. 

Yet it wasn't enough. 

Annabeth gritted her teeth. She was sick of being the only one putting in effort. He was still mad at her for basically saying their marriage was over - except it was true! She'd just had the guts to say it. 

Be friends, at least.

Percy had said that. Had he meant it? 

Annabeth glanced at Percy once more. He was still stoic, staring out onto the road. 

"Okay," she started, shifting in her seat and angling her knees towards him. "I heard you talking to Jason." Annabeth flushed. "I wish I could say it was an accident but it really wasn't. You don't tell me anything - even when I'm clearly a part of whatever's happening." 

Percy's cheeks had faded from a bright red to a pale shade of green. "What-what did you hear?" His knuckles on the steering wheel flashed white. 

"That Jason - even Jason, whom I met today - thinks you should tell me. And that you apparently won't listen to the advice of your best friend for the sake of keeping me 'safe'." 

"I am keeping you safe," Percy said, but Annabeth could hear a drop of uncertainty in his voice. It gave her hope, spurred her on. 

"At what cost, Percy?" Annabeth demanded. "Look, I'll admit that we weren't exactly perfect before all this happened - all the secret phone calls and doing everything without even consulting me - but even that wasn't entirely my fault! It took two people to ruin this relationship; you have never confided in me about anything substantial." 

She pointed out, "If that was to 'keep me safe', then I don't know if it was worth it, because well, I don't know what's going on, but you're acting like there's a murderer on my tail." 

The emotion that clouded his eyes made Annabeth's heart thrum even faster. Percy's eyelids flickered, lashes fluttering. 

"Percy," she said slowly. "Tell me. What's going on?" 

A deafening noise tore into Annabeth's ears, instinctively her hands slammed over her ears, her eyes springing wide. 

A car backfire, her mind supplied as the world around her moved in slow motion. 

The glass in the window to her left shattered with a piercing whistle, spraying her face with specks of glistening shards. 

Something hit the car - or Percy hit the breaks - as his right arm shot out to push her against the back of her seat, yelling, "Get down!" 

There was a jerk in the car's motion; the headrest collided with the back of Annabeth's head, jarring her thoughts and making her dizzy. 

She gasped. "Percy-Percy!"

The engine revved. Once. Twice. Thrice. And then they were off, shooting into the darkness ahead with only their headlights to guide them. 

"Percy, what are you-" Annabeth gasped, struggling to shove his arm off of her, as she whirled her head around, shaking and dusting off the glass. Her right hand came back dipped in blood from a gash on her cheek. 

"Is there a car following us?" Percy demanded. 

"What?"

"Check, is there a car following us?" he repeated forcefully. His eyes were narrowed, and he was manoeuvring around turns that tossed Annabeth around in the car - turns that he shouldn't have been able to make. 

"I-I-" Annabeth gripped her side of the car and shakily leaned her head out of the wind. Headlights winked at her. "Yes. Twenty feet away, maybe?" 

"We need to lose them," Percy said shortly. "Keep an eye on them but don't leave your head out for too long-"

"Percy Jackson," Annabeth said furiously. "Tell me now, what the hell is going on?" 

"I can't-"

"What do you mean you can't?" Annabeth said hysterically. "The window-the car-I-" She faltered, voice breaking off abruptly. 

Annabeth's gaze locked on Percy's side of the door; there, by the door handle, lodged into torn leather and plastic, was a bullet. 

"Percy," her voice trembled. 

"Hold on," he warned. 

Percy stepped on the gas, leading them on a race through New York.


	7. On The Run

"We're turning onto our street," Annabeth snapped as she began to recognise the headlights and trees. "Percy, if someone's trying to kill us, don't you think they'd already know where we live?" 

"Stop!" he said, panicked. "I-I just need to think, okay?" 

"If you just told me what was going on, maybe I could help!" Annabeth growled. 

Percy pushed their car into park. He spun around to face her, eyes pleading. "If I tell you, then you'll be liable for all the things I've done."

Annabeth remained speechless for a whole of two seconds. Percy was—he was Perfect Percy. He opened the car door for her and cooked her dinner and worked in a well-paying, safe job. He didn't...

Except she wouldn't know, would she? 

"We need to go now," Percy said, voice low and urgent. Annabeth believed him. She nodded slowly, trying to unfreeze her limbs as Percy leaped out on his side. 

Annabeth knew she was freaking out. She had a right to — she'd just been shot at — but this was an incredibly bad time for that. 

There was a click as the door on her side was flung open, Percy standing there looking like he'd aged ten years based on just the worry in his expression. 

"I'll explain," he finally said. "Just, please. I need you to trust me on this." Percy offered a hand, his eyes dark — and Percy never, ever begged. 

"Okay," she said, taking his hand. They ran to the front door, slamming the car door behind them. Annabeth shoved her keys in the long and twisted until the front door clicked open. 

As they stepped through the door, Percy shut it behind them and closed all its locks. 

"That's not gonna do anything," Annabeth told him. "We need to barricade it. Look, drag that couch over." 

As they amassed furniture behind the door, Annabeth did a quick sweep of the floor plan. "That's the only entrance, except it's also our only exit." 

"It's okay, I have a plan," Percy promised. 

Annabeth arched an eyebrow. "Really. Like the alarm system that's turned out to be so handy?" 

Percy flushed. "Shut up." 

"We should call the police—"

"No!" Percy interjected, eyes splayed open. "No, no, not the police. Not anyone in law enforcement. We can't trust them — they're the reason we're here." 

"What?" Annabeth demanded. "So what's your brilliant plan? Because you get scared when we watch 3D movies so don't blame me for not thinking we can actually defend ourselves." 

He rolled his eyes. "Of course, not. We're leaving." That simple answer prompted a billion more questions in Annabeth's head. 

"Leaving?" she asked. "What—the house?" 

"The state," Percy corrected. He shook his head as he started up the stairs, Annabeth at his heels. "Pack anything essential. We aren't gonna be back here for a while." 

"Percy," Annabeth emphasised. 

He stopped in his tracks. 

"Explanation." 

Percy ran a hand over his face. "It's a long story. We don't have time." 

Annabeth crossed her arms. "I'm not moving until I get an explanation." 

Percy gritted his teeth. "Annabeth, please." 

"No!" she snapped. "I've been waiting, and waiting, and you had every chance to tell me over the last week, over the last month — hell, we've been married for five years and you never once brought this up!" 

"You think I wanted you to know about this?" Percy demanded. "I spent every day praying that you'd never ever having to find out!" 

"Explanation," she repeated. "Now. I'm not budging." 

Percy implored the ceiling for patience, apparently, before he looked down at her. Annabeth knew she was being unreasonable. The longer they stayed put the greater the chance was that they'd be caught. But she needed to know. 

"Annabeth," Percy said slowly. "I will tell you once we get out of this house. But right now, if they catch us, we'll be dead." He closed his eyes for a moment. "I-I need you to trust me. Maybe not me, me — I know you probably hate me right now, for good reason. But the me you married. I need us out of this house, need to make sure that you aren't caught up in this before I-I tell you."

"You have to tell me everything," she insisted. 

Percy pursed his lips. "Okay." When met with her unfazed expression, he tried again, "I promise." 

Annabeth frowned. Percy had never broken a promise. He'd only ever made a few to her. 

"Fine," she said at last, using the bannister to pull herself up. "Let's go." 

Annabeth had never packed so quickly in her entire life. She and Percy had been on various vacations together and had almost missed their flight once, but nothing really spurred her on as much as knowing their lives were on the line. 

Percy burst into their bedroom as she tugged her jeans on. He blushed when he saw her in her bra, and Annabeth rolled her eyes. Married for five years and still he looked like a blushing virgin. 

"I've got passports, important documents, clothes," Annabeth informed him as she pulled a top on. "Credit cards?" 

"Useless," Percy shook his head. He already had a bag packed and it lay at his feet. "They can track us through the banks." 

Annabeth swallowed. She didn't like this feeling of not being able to trust anyone. In fact, the list of people she was now able to trust was narrowed down to this room. 

"We can't pay with cash everywhere—" Annabeth faltered. "The funds you took out of our bank account." 

Percy offered her a sheepish smile that was far too out-of-place.

"You evil genius," she muttered. "Whose name is the card under?" 

"Perry Johnson," Percy informed her. "Great, isn't it?" 

"You could've chosen any alias and you chose 'Perry'?" Annabeth shook her head. "I can't believe you." 

"Yeah, I was thinking that dude from Lord of the Rings but I figured that was too obvious." 

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "What, Gandalf?" 

Percy gave her a weird look. "What? No. Legolas. What's Gandalf's last name?" 

"Is this really necessary right now?" Annabeth asked. 

"Right, right. Let's go." 

Annabeth swung the duffel bag over her shoulder as she hurried down the stairs. 

The lock clicked. 

She froze in her tracks, Percy in a similar position at her heels. 

Murmurs came from outside, a conversation too muffled for Annabeth to make out anything. Percy muttered a curse under his breath. 

"You think we can get past them?" Percy whispered. "We need to get to the car." 

Annabeth shook her head. "No way." Her gaze flitted over the scene before her. "Living room." 

Percy's brow furrowed. "What?" 

Annabeth beckoned for him to follow her as she crept towards the living room. There were two large windows facing the street, and if the timed it right, they could climb out without their attackers even realising. 

She gestured to the windows, to which Percy responded by mouthing, brilliant. 

Annabeth shut the living room door behind them as silently as possible. Percy was opening the window furthest from the front door at a snail's pace, careful not to make a sound that might alert the attackers. 

"Now what?" Percy whispered, once the window was open. 

There was a loud bang as whoever was outside tried to break down the door. 

"Now we wait," she replied. 

It didn't take long for them to break down the door. Annabeth was slightly upset because she'd taken ages to choose a dumb colour for the door, and now it was gone, the wood splintered. 

She risked a glance at Percy, who was leaning against the wall with a haunted look on his face. Annabeth thought back to this morning — to yesterday. She would never in a million years have guessed that this was where she'd be. 

On the run with Percy. 

Was he a criminal? Annabeth shuddered at the thought. Percy had said they couldn't trust law enforcement — was that because they were the bad guys in this situation? Maybe her being a prosecutions lawyer hadn't been such a great vocational choice. 

But Percy didn't strike her as a criminal. Then again, Annabeth had never thought that he would be hiding something at big as this from her. 

There was a loud screeching from the hallway as the attackers got past the door, shoving the wall of furniture away. 

Annabeth gestured to Percy, you first. He shook his head stubbornly. She shot him a glowering look — but they didn't have time to argue right now. Annabeth set her bag down in the garden first before she swung a leg over the windowsill, ducking her head under the bar. 

She really, really hoped their neighbours were asleep now. She'd never be invited to the Smiths' summer barbecue next year. 

Annabeth dusted herself off and grabbed her bag. Percy climbed out behind her, his bag balanced on his back as he nimbly swung himself out. 

"Show-off," she whispered. 

They crept out of the garden, and Annabeth hated that she was getting her nice trainers muddy, which was probably the least of her worries at the moment. 

"I'm driving," Annabeth said before he could object, pulling the keys out of his hand. She slid into the driver's seat, Percy sitting down beside her. "Give you some time to think about how you're going to explain this to me," she said sarcastically. 

"Fine by me," he said bemusedly, reaching into the glove compartment. When Percy retracted his hand with a gun inside, Annabeth almost leaped out of her seat. 

"What the hell is that?" Annabeth demanded. 

Percy looked down at the firearm he was clutching. "A puppy." 

"I'm sorry, you have a gun?" she said incredulously, ignoring his reply. "You, who went on a protest last year for gun control laws and argues about it with my dad over Christmas." 

"Why did you think I hate guns so much?" Percy said, the corner of his mouth quirking up. It was the first time he had even remotely smiled in weeks, and Annabeth felt herself relax in the face of it. "Had too many bad experiences with it." 

Annabeth made a sound of disbelief. "Who are you?" 

"Answering that now would require a spoiler alert for my explanation later," Percy reminded impatiently. "Come on, drive." 

Annabeth stepped on the gas pedal, wincing at the noise the engine generated. There were shouts coming from inside their house as the attackers raced outside, but by the time they step foot out the front door, Annabeth was off, jettisoning into the night.


End file.
